Ashes of Hope: From Girls to Witches
by Kaorin Sakura
Summary: Sakura Kaorin's journey through different realities continue ends up in the world of Puella Magi as her 14th visited. Upon entry she's mistaken as someone else and quickly finds the world isn't as simple as it appears.
1. Chapter 1: Entry and Acceptance

**Chapter 1: Entry and Acceptance**

A teenage girl with short dark brown hair and vibrant green eyes stands in an alleyway as she gets dressed while an older, graying man in a business suit stares at her tanned body. Light worry stains his face as he occasionally pulls his eyes from any exposed body part of the girl to glance at the alleys entrance. The girl, having been completely nude, just a moment ago doesn't mind. The older man is also the reason she has any clothes at all, "What's your name, little lady?" he asks.

"Sakura." She answers and finishes dressing herself. Now wearing a sleeveless white bra and panties underneath a white sleeveless tank top and dark blue short skirt, she felt rather revealing but no longer sporting her birthday suit which is just asking for more problems. The white stockings and black shoes at least added some semblance of innocence to clash. She appreciated that. While grateful to now be clothed she was suspicious of the older man's motives. She suspects that he didn't purchase the clothing and bring it to her out of the goodness of his heart.

"That isn't your real name, is it?" He asked, sounding rather disappointed. She merely nodded to confirm with him which causes him to smile a bit and beckons for her to follow him out of the alley. Upon stepping out of the alley she's quickly startled by the vibrant neon lights of the storefronts, tall city-like buildings and the bustle of people moving with purpose all over the streets.

"Where is this? I don't recognize this place." She asks, glancing up to the older male when he wraps his right arm around her. Letting it rest on her shoulder and pulling her closer to him she was now certain of his motive.

"You don't? You must've had a really rough night…" He says before giving her shoulder a firm squeeze, "Mitakihara. Do you remember how you got here?" She shook her head and took another look around at the sights to try to memorize the place but only succeeding in looking lost, "That's…well, just so you know I'm not into drugs or anything. Just a good time." She felt him caress her shoulder gently and she nodded, more so to herself, "You look like you could use some help. A place to stay, for a night or two, food…comfort."

She nodded again, already gathering her thoughts on how to avoid any sexual contact, possibly steal all his money and- "Stop right there!" The man flinched and spin around, bringing Sakura to turn with him and see an adult woman with short purple hair and eyes staring harshly at her. Beside the purple haired woman stands a male police officer, "I've been looking all over for you!" She yelled before discreetly winking at Sakura.

Catching the hint and not wanting the discomfort of authority or sexual avoidance, Sakura went along and bowed her head, "I-I'm sorry…"

"We're going to have a long talk about your behavior! Officer, you heard and saw everything, right?" The woman asked without even looking at the officer.

"I heard and saw more than enough but I'll still need your report on this later." The officer stated, "Someone will be down to speak with you. I'll give you a call when they're on their way."

The purple haired woman nodded, took Sakura by the wrist and forcibly pulled her away from the two men. With a quick strut that Sakura nearly stumbled to keep up with, they were quickly around a few corners and the woman let Sakura's wrist go. Sakura glanced behind herself, slowing her pace and realized she hadn't had the time to take in the directions they walked and was quickly lost, "You're not going to run away from me, right?" The woman asked continuing to walk albeit slowly.

Sakura slipped her hands into her skirt pockets and shook her head, "I don't have anywhere to run _to_."

The woman snapped her head around and looked at Sakura intently, "Going through things with your parents? That why you're doing this?"

"I, uhm, don't have any parents? Or relatives. And this isn't a _thing_ I do. I was planning to escape without making a big scene." Sakura paused and twisted her head to look away from the woman, wondering why she bothered saying so much, "It helps not to draw attention to myself."

The woman suddenly stopped nearly causing Sakura to bump into her, "I don't believe you. **Everyone** has parents. Just because they aren't the best or don't agree with you doesn't mean they aren't there for you." She said placing her hands on her hips. She was trying to look big and in charge, Sakura noted, "Now, whether you like it or not it's time to make up with them. I'm Kaname Junko. Tell me your name."

"Sakura K-" Sakura snapped her mouth shut before she said her first name and shook her head, "Nng, Sakura. J-Just Sakura. I'm sorry."

Junko raised an eyebrow before shrugging, "Not going to make this easy? Well, I'll find your parents regardless. Come with me." She said before turning back to focus on what was before her and motioned for Sakura to follow, "Don't make this a struggle."

Sakura cursed internally but followed Junko. She was more annoyed at this situation than anything else but Junko meant well, that much she could tell and decided to let this place out, "I won't Kaname-san."

Sakura was surprised that Junko took her to her home rather than a police station. She was busy in the main room speaking with the police about Sakura's history, parents and the event from earlier. Sakura sat in the kitchen and dining area with Junko's husband Tomohisa, her three year old son Tatsuya and her fourteen year old daughter, Madoka. Sakura felt incredibly out of place but accepted their kindness, especially when Tomohisa offered her food, "Please, don't think poorly of Junko. She's just unable to stand-by when there's someone in trouble. Especially a pretty young woman like you"

Sakura shook her head, "I don't. She's really admirable. It takes a strong woman to do this… I think she's pretty amazing."

"I'm amazed by my mom too." Madoka said looking at her intently, "But why won't you tell us your first name?"

"It's not that I-" was all that Sakura could get out before-

"Sakura **Kyoko**!" Junko screamed as she stepped into the room causing Sakura to jump and stare in shock at her, "…That's…that's really you, isn't it?" Sakura didn't respond and looked away, unsure how to respond to it, "That's…why you said you didn't have…" Junko said before swallowing thickly, "And why you wouldn't tell me…" Sakura didn't raise her head by everyone else looked confused, "I uh, need to speak with Tomohisa. Madoka, could you take Kyoko-chan upstairs?" Madoka didn't say anything but nodded and gently took Sakura's hand. She looked at Sakura softly as she led her upstairs into her room.

Sakura hadn't seen such a girly place before . There were a collection of dolls adorning the borders of the room and the decorations and blankets of her bed screamed _girl_. She clicked her tongue to calm herself and focus. Placing her hand on the doorknob she gently opened the bedroom door, "Mom and dad wanted their privacy. We should-"

"It involves me, Kaname-chan. I want to know how much your mother's telling him…" Sakura muttered without looking away from the door. Madoka began to protest but decided not to and listened as well.

Junko sat with Tomohisa and pinched the bridge of her nose, "Both parents and her younger sister, Sakura Momo…"

Tomohisa sat beside Junko, his face in deep pain, "Forced suicide? She's the only survivor?" She nodded and shakily placed her hands on the table.

"And here I was spouting all that non-sense about her parents after she told me she had none!" She looked up at him with a defeated look, "What should we do?"

He paused and gathered his thoughts, "…At her age an orphanage wouldn't be any help." He paused again, as if letting his thought hit her telepathically.

"I agree but…" She paused and studied his expression, "…but should we? It's…it's a big deal."

"A big deal to us? Or more so to Kyoko?" He asked, placing his hand on hers. She still seemed hesitant, "We can handle it. It's just a matter of it we want to."

She gazed into his eyes for a long moment before sitting up straight with renewed vigor, "Alright! We can do this! We just need to know how Madoka and Kyoko feels about it."

Sakura heard all she needed and gently closed the door. She was certain Junko and Tomohisa weren't aware of her eavesdropping, so they weren't saying what she merely wanted to hear. She turned to Madoka who was staring right at her, "…Look, Kaname-chan, I'm not-"

"I've always wanted a big sister." Madoka said, interrupting her, "I know I can't replace Momo-chan but…" Madoka gently reached out ot Sakura, being cautious of this emotional scene, "We can't replace your family, but…what do _you_ want?"

Sakura kept shifting between Madoka's eyes unable to answer. Just as she opened her mouth to speak Madoka and her were called downstairs.

Sakura and Madoka sat side by side at the dining table across from both Junko and Tomohisa, "We know this is sudden but we feel that due to the circumstances it needs to be." Junko said before turning to Madoka, "Madoka…how would you feel if Kyoko-chan lived with us?"

Madoka nodded energetically, "I'd love to have a big sister!" Sakura turned to Madoka and stood from her chair.

"No! You can't – I can't-!" Sakura paused at everyone's shocked faces and had to calm herself before continuing, "I'm – we're complete strangers. I haven't even known you all for a day! We can't do this!"

Junko motioned for Sakura to sit back down, "I know after what you've been through it's really hard to trust anyone. I can't even imagine what you've been through in-between, based on how we met – but we're offering you an opportunity. We're not going to force you into this. You don't have to stay if you don't want to."

Sakura was now the one with the shocked face and stared at them in disbelief. Just what sort of world did she come to? "But I'm not…" Sakura began and the memories of all she had been through flooded her mind. A torrent of experiences both joyful and terrible coupled with a longing need to belong, "But I…I don't deserve anything like this…"

Tomohisa placed his hand on Junko's to silence her when she moved to respond, "Kyoko-chan, everyone deserves the chance to be happy. Don't ever think you're excluded from that."

Sakura could feel he rlip quiver at those words. Were they real? Was this real? Did people like this really exist? She struggled to respond. She wasn't sure if she _should_ accept this incredible offer. She knew basically nothing of them and if they were really crazy she could escape easily but she got the feeling they were legit. From all her past experiences this sure as hell beat traveling the streets, scrounging for wealth and supplies and dealing with the elements, "I…" She managed out thickly. Her face felt hot and when she blinked a patter of liquid fell onto her hands. She reached up and touched her face in surprise as she discovered there were tears on her face, "I want to but…I don't want you to hate me." She managed out trying to wipe her face.

"Onee-chan…" Madoka said gently squeezing Sakura's hands, "We won't hate you."


	2. Chapter 2: So much for normalcy

**Chapter 2: So much for a normalcy**

The night was rather ethereal for Sakura after that. Junko measured her and went to get her some tasteful clothes while she took a nice long bath. The bath was the most memorable. It had been so long since she had one with heated water, in any privacy. It gave her the ability to relax and **think**. It was the best part of the night easily.

Once given new clothes, she was told that one of the storage rooms would be repurposed to be her bedroom. Until then, she'd room with Madoka. It was an awkward night of sleep for her. In the morning she went to take a placement test for school and was given the option to go home or wait for Madoka at her school. She leaned against the schools wall next to the front entrance gate and waited for the school to dismiss. The city _felt_ normal, the people behaved normally and this life reminded her what life was like realities ago. She wanted to give this big sister thing a chance.

She wasn't she how long she'd been waiting at the gate but it was long enough to be approached by several officers individually. None of them seemed convinced by her situation but they at least left her alone. Eventually the bell sounded the dismissal and students began actively leaving the building though none of them seemed to be readily exiting the campus. Most took notice of her and while none of them spoke directly to her they did speak about her.

Sooner or later, Madoka exited the school and began walking toward the gate, though she wasn't alone. A blue haired, blue eyed girl was walking with her, "Onee-chan?" Madoka said quizzically, causing her friend to smirk. Sakura didn't say anything but glanced to her friend enough for the blue haired girl to catch on.

"Madoka, she the new older sister you talked about?" She said, causing Madoka to visibly flinch.

"Don't say it like that!" Madoak scolded with a stomp of her foot.

"Say it like what?" She asked before waving slightly to Sakura, "I'm Miki Sayaka. You're Kyoko, right?"

Sakura visibly twitched at the name and looked to Madoka who slinked a bit away from her gaze, "You told her my name?"

"Of course she did. What? Is that a problem?" Sayaka asked, with a hint of aggression in her voice. She was obviously protective of Madoka.

"I guess not. I'd prefer Sakura. I generally don't tell people my first name if I can avoid it." Sakura said, "You two must be close, though." She quickly added to avoid the topic of why.

Sayaka grinned proudly at the comment, "We sure are. Isn't that right, Madoka?" She gleefully said as she hugged Madoka, who giggled to the affection.

"We're good friends, Sayaka-chan, but don't give onee-chan the wrong idea!" Madoka said blushing and tensing under Sayaka's touch, "What were you waiting for, one-chan?"

"You." Sakura said flatly, "The test didn't take long. I think I did well. I only had difficulty in history."

Madoka blinked, "M-Me?" She asked, surprised.

"Yeah. I thought you could show me around town, school or just hang out. We don't know anything about each other and I wanted to try to change that." Sakura said and waited for Madoka's response. When none came after a moment, she placed her hands on her hips, "Had plans already? I can go if I'm butting in."

"We're going out for smoothies." Sayaka said before Madoka could respond this time, "Not that I'd mind if you joined us."

"Hitomi-chan's coming too!" Madoka said, looking around as if she only now realized their third member wasn't present.

Sakura studied Madoka for a moment before cupping her hands in front of her waist to try to seem less standoffish, "You won't hurt my feelings if you want me to go, Madoka-chan. We can just try again later."

"I don't think Hitomi would mind." Sayaka said just as a girl with long brown hair stepped over to the group.

"Mind what?" The girl asked.

"Ah! Hitomi! If Madoka's sister came with us." Sayaka said happily.

Hitomi looked to Sakura then to Madoka. She seemed to carefully consider the social encounter, "I don't mind. It would be a good opportunity to break the ice." She said with a smile.

Sakura watched as the tension in Madoka visibly dropped before turning to Hitomi, who was watching her unexpectedly, "I'm Sakura. Pleased to meet you, miss…?"

Hitomi tilted her head in mild irritation, "Don't you have a first name?"

"She's sensitive about her first name!" Sayaka said, just as Sakura was about to speak. Sakura just merely nodded.

"I see. Well, I'm not. My name is Shizuki Hitomi. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, Shizuki-san." Sakura said with a bow, prompting Hitomi to bow reflexively.

The walk to the shop was short but in the opposite direction from home, Sakura noted. Everyone got their drinks at the shop and sat down. Sakura sat beside Madoka across from Hitomi and Sayaka. Sakura was staring hard at the smoothie on the table in front of her.

"…Have you never had a smoothie, before, Sakura-san?" Hitomi asked, legitimate concern in her voice.

"I've had smoothies before. Strawberry is my favorite." Sakura answered and Sayaka giggled.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was your afternoon delight." Sayaka teased.

Sakura gently took the smoothie in her hands and shook her head, "No, I prefer a woman's touch for that." The comment stunned everyone at the table and she took the silence as an opportunity to sip the smoothie, "Divine." She said with a shaky sigh.

"But that's forbidden love!" Hitomi nearly screamed. Both Madoka and Sayaka recoiled from Hitomi though Sakura merely continued to calmly drink her smoothie.

"T-That was just a joke, right?" Sayaka asked and Sakura paused in her drinking to ponder it over briefly.

"Mm. No, I meant it. Women smell better and are more comfortable to interact with. Especially intimately. Well, typically anyway. There's exceptions." Sakura responded, "Though, I'm not a lesbian. I like **people**. Intelligence and personality first and appearance and sex second. If you're a terrible person or too stupid I won't find you attractive no matter what."

"You better not do anything weird to Madoka!" Sayaka said pointing to Sakura.

Sakura shrugged, "Who I'm attracted to and who I'm intimate with aren't one and the same. I can't control who I find attractive but I can control who I'm intimate with. I don't become intimate with those I'm not attracted to or those who don't want me." Sakura said taking another sip of her smoothie, "Madoka has nothing to worry about."

Sayaka placed her hand down and grew quiet. Hitomi took this moment to speak, "You talk as if you have a lot of experience. Does this stem from your previous residence?"

Sakura paused and looked Hitomi over, "You seem pretty well educated…" Sakura mumbled, "I'm not a prostitute if that's what you're getting at. Never was and never will be."

Hitomi huffed a bit, "You're quite…blunt."

Sakura nodded, "I prefer to be direct. No reason to make someone guess my intentions or the validity of my words." She said before nodding to everyone, "But I can see you're protective of Madoka-chan, which makes me happy. I like to know she had good friends. I'll be happy to answer anymore questions you have."

Hitomi and Sayaka looked to one another before looking back at Sakura. Sakura turned to Madoka who was quiet the whole time. She was looking down at the table with an embarrassed expression. Sakura noted how this was making her feel and decided to try to make light of the situation, "I don't take offense to any of this. It's cool. If I were in your shoes I'd probably be worse. Some random girl with no knowledge of them or their history suddenly adopted into my friends family? Awfully suspicious." Sakura watched as Sayaka slowly nodded though Hitomi merely listened quietly. Madoka seemed to shrink more into her seat. Perhaps fear of this embarrassment was the real reason she seemed to be avoiding this get-together earlier. A stark contrast to the Madoka she saw last night. She gently squeezed Madoka's shoulder reassuringly, "But the Kaname's have offered me something precious. Something priceless. I don't want to squander the kindness they've given me. I want to make this work."

Neither Hitomi nor Sayaka looked convinced but Madoka did at least look up with a weak smile, "And how do you feel about this, Madoka-chan?" Hitomi asked, stoically.

Madoka gasped when put on the spot, "I-I, well…I always wanted a sister…and onee-chan has been nice."

"She'll have to be more than 'nice'!" Sayaka interrupted, "We'll be keeping an eye on you."

Sakura laughed, catching everyone off guard, "Good! I'd be disappointed if you didn't. I don't know how I did, but you two gave me a good first impression. You seem to care and I hope that stays consistent." Sakura nudged Madoka's arm gently, "This wonderful girl deserves nothing less."

The conversation moved to more nuanced topics and the atmosphere became more friendly. Afterward, Hitomi had to excuse herself and that essentially ended their time at the shop. The three of them began walking toward Madoka's home after parting from Hitomi, "So, Sakura. Think you'll end up at Mitakihara Junior High?"

Sakura smiled, indulging fully in the normalness the day has been, "I hope so. I'd love to walk to school in the morning with Madoka-chan."

"You'd also see Hitomi-chan and Sayaka-chan. I walk to school with them as well." Madoka said cautiously.

"Think I wouldn't enjoy that? You have good friends Madoka-chan." Sakura said giggling.

"Madoka!" An astral voice echoed in everyone's head, causing all three of them to pause.

Sakura looked to Madoka and Sayaka and their expressions told her that they both heard the voice and were also utterly confused by it.

"Madoka! Save me!" The voice echoed again.

Sakura's eyes twitched as it spoke again and she began to question Madoka and Sayaka when…

"It's coming from over here!" Madoka screamed and ran toward a parking garage.

"Madoka! Wait!" Sayaka yelled as she ran after Madoka. Sakura hissed at the strange event and Madoka's recklessness before running after the both of them.

Madoka was practically sprinting into the garage and up the staircase. She was running toward a specific point. Like she knew exactly where the voice was coming from and the most direct route to reach it. Both Sakura and Sayaka were too pre-occupied racing after Madoka to pay much attention to where they were heading. By the time they reached Madoka they had run up several flights of stairs and across multiple parking lots.

"You poor thing…" Madoka said, cradling some bloody white cat-looking-rabbit-thing in her lap.

"Please, save me…" It said, from its own body rather than from within their heads.

Sayaka was staring at it and huffing, "Wh-What _is_ that?" She asked and just as Madoka was about to answer Sakura interrupted.

"I'm more concerned about what it was running from." She said, looking around, "So much for a normal day…"

At that moment a girl looking to be about Madoka and Sayaka's age stepped out of the shadows. She had long black hair and purple eyes and wore a purple and white school uniform. Sakura then realized that her outfit less resembled a school uniform and more like a tasteful variation of a sailor moon uniform. The sounds of rattling chains filled the area as the girl dropped a large collection of it.

"Homura-chan?" Madoka asked, confusion in her voice.

When Homura turned to look at Madoka her face softened a little until she saw the creature in her lap, "Move away from him."

"B-But he's hurt!" Madoka said looking down at the creature. He looked back panting and Homura began moving toward them, "N-No, don't hurt him!"

Sakura moved between both Homura and Madoka and stomped her right foot, easily breaking the concrete causing all of them to flinch briefly, "I don't know who you are or how you got this close without me noticing but approach my sister again and you'll regret it."

Homura froze with wide eyes and stared hard at Sakura. A look of disbelief stained her face, "Your…sister?" She took in a shaky breath and composed herself. She glanced at Madoka before looking directly at Sakura, "You're not related to her. Who are you?"

Sakura studied her eerily familiar face until she recognized it. It was the expression. One that Sakura wore for a long time, "My name is Sakura. And you…you're bigger than that body." Sakura said catching Homura's full attention now, "Your soul is older than those bones. How old _are_ you really?"

Homura stared at Sakura for a long moment, " _What_ are you?"

Sayaka suddenly stepped in front of Sakura with a fire extinguisher and sprayed it at Homura. After a sizeable vapor cloud formed she threw the extinguisher into the cloud with a grunt and grabbed Madoka and Sakura's hands, "Come on, this way!" She said as she pulled them both away from Homura and back the way they came. Before long the area around them distorted and they stopped, "What the-? Where's the exit? Where are we?"

"Someplace else." Sakura said, glaring at the place around her, "It's almost like we teleported. This place feels…angry and sad."

"Who cares how it feels! We need to find a way out!" Sayaka yelled at Sakura and frantically began looking around.

Madoka suddenly tugged on Sakura and Sayaka's arms before pointing to the distance, "Something's there…!"

Clouds began approaching them from the distance, though these have mustaches and are chattering some sort of gibberish. Sayaka's mouth drops as she see's this, "This can't be happening, ca-"

"It is so **pay attention**!" Sakura yelled, interrupting Sayaka, "I'll handle these and whatever else monsters show up so you two focus on finding a way out." She then rolls up her sleeves and grips her hands tightly. Flames erupt around her fists and she moves to stand between the clouds and Madoka and Sayaka.

"Wh-What-your hands!" Madoka began.

"Not the time to be **gawking** , you two!" Sakura says before a ball of fire forms in the palm of her hand and she throws it at the cloud with incredible accuracy. The fireball erupts into an explosion far larger than its small size would indicate, wiping out the collection of Cloudstaches. A strong gust of wind nearly toppled over Madoka and Sayaka from the force of the explosion.

Madoka and Sayaka stare at Sakura, dumbfounded and in awe. Breaking them from being awestruck the area around them continues to morph. Shadowy vines and chains begin to form all over the place. Sakura grumbled as eyes and lips began forming along the walls or just the background of wherever they were.

"Alight, monsters dealt with for the moment." Sakura said motioning for Madoka and Sayaka to start moving, "Let's find a way out before more show up."

As if on queue, more clouds descend from above but also with eyes and lips in addition to mustaches and gibbering louder than before. Just as Sakura began to form another fireball, light breaks through the floor, destroying it. A blond haired girl with pigtails, golden eyes and a school uniform jumps in from the light. She turns to look at everyone and gives Sakura a look of suspicion but smiles to Madoka and Sayaka.

"You saved Kyubey, didn't you? Thank you. He's an important friend to me." She says as she grasps a golden gem when all the clouds land around them in heavy thumps. There's a sudden flash of golden light from the blond and once it fades she's in a more sophisticated golden variant of Homura's outfit. With a spin, a wall of rifles manifest around them at the blonds command and with a flick of her wrist they all fire, decimating the Cloudstaches entirely. Shortly afterward, the distorted area fades and they're back in the parking garage.

Madoka and Sayaka are awestruck by the blond. Sakura swipes her arms through the air, extinguishing the flames around her hands.

"W-We're back!" Sayaka exclaimed and both Madoka and her give breaths of relief.

Homura appears nearby, descending in from the darkness above and landing on crates against a wall, she turns to look at them.

"The witch ran away." The blond began, "You'll need to chase after it quickly if you want to take it down." She said before waving her hand dismissively, "I'll give you the witch this time."

"The witch isn't what I'm interested in." Homura said bluntly.

"You don't seem to understand what's going on here." The blond said, placing her hands on her hips, "I'm saying, I'm letting you go."

"You could've just said that the first time." Sakura said, folding her arms.

"Onee-chan!" Madoka yelled, "She just saved us! Be nice!" Madoka calling Sakura 'onee-chan' made Homura's eyes grow wide and for her to bite her lower lip.

After a few moments, Homura turned around and jumped behind the creates out of sight.

Sakura blinked and looked around before rubbing her chin, "…Curious how she vanishes like that…"

The blond waves her hand and with another gold flash of light, her outfit returns to a school uniform, "What's more curious is how you can notice." She then turns to Madoka and Sayaka, "Are you second year Mitakihara stundents?" Both Madoka and Sayaka nod, "I should introduce myself." She said holding her gem to the white creature named Kyubey, "I'm Tomoe Mami. I think we have a few things to discuss."


End file.
